The Australian sports calendar, month by month
Football in winter, cricket in summer and plenty in between: when each major Australian competition and event is usually played.
Australian sport runs on two overlapping seasons. Winter belongs to the football codes, with the AFL and NRL running from March to September or October. Summer is cricket's time, though the A-League and the Australian Open share it. Plenty of competitions sit in between, and the women's leagues have their own windows that do not always match the men's.
This calendar sets out when each major competition is usually played. Exact dates move a little every year, so treat the months as a guide and check the fixture for the current season. Where we give a specific date, it comes from the most recent season we checked.
The calendar at a glance
| Competition | Sport | Typical season |
|---|---|---|
| AFL | Australian rules football | March to September |
| AFLW | Australian rules football | August to November |
| NRL | Rugby league | March to early October |
| NRLW | Rugby league | July to early October |
| State of Origin | Rugby league | May to July |
| Test summer | Cricket | November to January |
| Sheffield Shield | Cricket | October to March |
| WBBL | Cricket | October to December |
| BBL | Cricket | December to January |
| A-League Men | Soccer | October to May |
| A-League Women | Soccer | November to May |
| Australian Open | Tennis | January |
| Australian Grand Prix | Formula One | March |
| Super Netball | Netball | April to August |
| NBL | Basketball | September to March, finals into April |
January
January is the busiest month for summer sport. The Test summer usually finishes with the New Year Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, which is the traditional venue for it. Since 2008 it has also been called the Pink Test, raising money for the McGrath Foundation's breast cancer work, and the third day is known as Jane McGrath Day. In the 2025-26 Ashes the Sydney Test ran from 4 to 8 January 2026.
The Big Bash League reaches its finals in the second half of the month. The 2025-26 final was played on 25 January 2026. The Australian Open, the first of tennis's four Grand Slam tournaments each year, is played over two weeks at Melbourne Park, usually starting around the middle of the month. The A-League Men and A-League Women are in the middle of their regular seasons, and the NBL is heading towards the end of its regular season.
February
February is quieter. Sheffield Shield rounds continue, the A-League seasons carry on, and the NBL regular season wraps up. In 2025-26 the NBL regular season ended in late February. The football codes are in pre-season, although the NRL started its 2026 season on 28 February.
March
March is the changeover month. The AFL season starts with Opening Round, which in 2026 began on 5 March at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The NRL regular season is under way, and the Australian Grand Prix is held at Albert Park in Melbourne, where it has been run since 1996. The 2026 race, on 8 March, was the opening round of the Formula One world championship.
Summer competitions are finishing at the same time. The Sheffield Shield final is a five-day match in late March. The 2025-26 final ran from 26 to 30 March 2026. The NBL finals are played through March, with play-in games, semi-finals and then a best-of-five Grand Final series.
April
The NBL Grand Final series can run into early April, finishing on 5 April in 2026. Super Netball starts around now. The 2025 season began on 5 April. The A-League regular seasons end, and the finals series begin. The AFL and NRL are in their early rounds.
May
May belongs to the A-League finals. The A-League Women Grand Final was played on 16 May 2026 and the A-League Men season ended on 23 May 2026, although the 2026-27 men's season is scheduled to run into early June 2027.
Rugby league's State of Origin series usually opens in May. Origin is a best-of-three series between the New South Wales Blues and the Queensland Maroons, played midway through the NRL season. The 2025 series opened on 18 May. Our State of Origin guide explains how it works.
June
June is winter football at full stretch. The AFL and NRL rounds continue each weekend, State of Origin is in progress, and Super Netball is about halfway through its 14-round regular season.
July
State of Origin usually ends in July. The 2025 series finished on 9 July. The NRLW season starts around this time, with the 2025 season beginning on 3 July. The AFL and NRL are into the second half of their seasons, and the Super Netball finals are getting close.
August
The AFLW season starts in August. In 2026 it began on 9 August, with a 12-round home-and-away season for its 18 clubs. Super Netball usually holds its Grand Final in July or August. The 2025 decider was played on 2 August at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, although in earlier seasons the date has ranged from June to October. The AFL and NRL regular seasons finish in late August or early September.
September
September is finals month for the winter codes. The AFL finals series has, from 2026, involved the top ten clubs over five weeks, starting with a wildcard round in which seventh hosts tenth and eighth hosts ninth. The Grand Final is played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground at the end of the month. In 2026 it was held on 26 September. Our guide to the AFL finals system covers the format, and the MCG guide covers the ground.
The NRL finals series, for the top eight teams, runs through September. The NBL starts its new season in September, with the 2025-26 regular season beginning on 18 September 2025.
October
The NRL Grand Final is played in early October at Stadium Australia in Sydney. In 2026 it was on 4 October. The NRLW Grand Final has been played on the same day and at the same venue as the men's decider since 2022. Our NRL finals guide explains the path there.
The summer sports start in October. The Sheffield Shield season began on 4 October in 2025-26. The Women's Big Bash League has played in its own window from October to December since 2019-20. The A-League Men kicks off in mid October, starting on 16 October in 2026. The AFLW is in the middle of its season.
November
The Test summer usually starts in November. In the 2025-26 Ashes, the first Test began at Perth Stadium on 21 November 2025. The A-League Women season starts around the start of November, beginning on 31 October in 2025-26. The AFLW Grand Final is played on the final weekend of November, and the 2026 season is scheduled to end on 27 November.
December
December is cricket's month. The Test series continues, and the Boxing Day Test starts at the Melbourne Cricket Ground every year on 26 December. The MCG had its largest Boxing Day crowd in 2025, with 94,119 people there for the first day of the fourth Ashes Test. The WBBL finishes in early to mid December, with the 2025-26 final played on 13 December 2025.
The Big Bash League starts in mid December. In 2025-26 it began on 14 December 2025, the day after the WBBL final, and ran into late January, when the tennis and the New Year Test take the calendar back to January. Our guides to the Big Bash League and the Sheffield Shield explain how the two domestic competitions are organised, and the A-League Men guide covers the soccer season that runs alongside them.
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